I too store in Rubbermaid containers in my garage. When I had fewer dogs and was going through the food less frequently I did the same, just kept it the food in the bag in the container. I feed Earthborn Holistic a lot now and really like their bags because they are resealable, like a zip lock, so those have come in handy. If I were in an apartment I'd store in the bag, in a container. If you're worried about plastic perhaps use a metal garbage can.

20 minutes each way (I'm from Michigan, so we sort of measure distance in time ) It's about 11 miles one way. But the prices are absolutely unbeatable, and it's family-owned and independent. Not terribly clean or pretty, but the prices are stellar and worth the drive.

I rotate various formulas of TOTW with Earthborn Holistics, along with the occasional grain-inclusive thrown in the mix to stretch it out. My guys are chow hounds, so I can add much for taste other than they'll eat it gladly (though if it's remotely edible that is the case). It's a good food for a good price, my guys have always done very well on it. They're eating the Wetlands formula mixed with some Kirkland chicken and rice, all have nice tight stools and are in excellent condition. I highly recommend!

I think that's very doable. I leave my dogs in the car fairly often, I live in a low-crime area and they are secured in a crate and quiet, I think most people don't even know they are in there. I of course don't do it when it's too hot, or when I'm in a questionable area, but if you have a car-comfortable dog and can check on him, I think it's a possibly good solution You may also consider calling local pet sitters/dog walkers, who can come walk him mid-day for a lot less than daycare.

Lenny, YES! AP was my favorite, I loved Good Dog U and Breed All ABout It. And K9 To Five was awesome. One of my favorite shows ever was on that channel, "Caught In the Moment". It followed a pair of wildlife photographers/filmmakers. It was awesome. Man, those were the glory days. I hardly ever watch now, most of the shows are weird and don't really have anything to do with animals. AS for the Stuffers thing, so creepy! It's just not a healthy way to grieve. You're pet is not the body. That may be part of it, but when they are gone, they're gone. They are called "remains" for a reason!

They both aren't bad for a chew, although as others have mentioned, not a whole lot of teeth-cleaning advantage if you have a dog that's not tiny, Quincy goes through one in about 30 seconds (I've only tried the check-ups, so I can't speak for the others, just my experience with similar products). I would say of the two, I actually prefer Kirkland's if only for the omegas and glucosamine added, although I give my dogs wild salmon oil and glucosamine everyday anyways. Anyways, I don't think they're bad as an occasional treat, but I wouldn't rely on these for dental care.

I don't really know how "tasty" these are, since my dogs are total pigs and will eat gosh darn near anything, taste is not something I worry about. You could possibly eamil the companies for the ones that look like they'll work for you and ask for samples. But here are some brands of LID I know are decent, not sure if all of them meet the protein/fat ratios you need but they are LID. There's Blue Buffalo Back to Basics, Wellness Simple Solutions, Nature's Variety Instinct LID formulas, TOTW pacific stream(salmon) and sierra mountain(lamb), California Naturals... Those are the ones that pop in my head right away.

So, this year was a bit annoying in regards to parasites. In May our three cats were treated for tape worm. In August, we found tapeworm "sheddings" in the dog poop, so treated all of the dogs and cats again. In October, when I went in for Quincy's routine fecal for his therapy dog certification, it came back positive for roundworm. This was especially surprising, since all of the dogs were on Heartgard Plus (except the sheltie, who was on Inteceptor) all spring/summer,which is supposed to kill them. So, we treated all of the dogs for roundworm. A couple of weeks ago we re-ran fecals, and finally got a clean bill. This was the first year we've had any issues with parasites. None of the animals have fleas, and while the cats are indoor/outdoor and Riley is a bit of a hunter (though he doesn't eat the mice) my vet guessed that they probably ingested a flea off of a mouse and that's how they were getting infected. We have a big backyard where the dogs hang out when we're home and it's nice, so sometimes they get into stuff that they maybe shouldn't, but still.

So, I've been trying to get a game plan for next year, and was hoping to get some feedback. The plan is to start everyone on heart worm meds in March (we live in Michigan, typically that's when the ground thaws) and running heart worm tests to make sure we are starting in the clear (although we haven't had heartworm, seeing them get roundworm while on medication that was supposed to prevent that makes me worry, so we're going to start testing yearly). Then in May-August giving Frontline. In the fall, we'll do fecals on everyone and see if we've got to treat for anything. So, thoughts? I am so frustrated and just want to make a plan so we can better handle this next year. Thanks

I agree, this doesn't sound like typical thyroid issues, does seem to have more symptoms in the diabetes strand. Personally, I would check that first, I think testing is cheaper, and rule that out. Then go for thyroid if blood sugar is normal. Quincy was diagnosed with hypothyroidism when he was two, presented mostly with lethargy and decrease of stamina. I get his thyroid panels run through Michigan State University, they do a more extensive test than the regular one done by most vets. I trust my vet a lot and he was really good about listening, if I hadn't gotten the answers I wanted I probably would have sent them to Jean Dodd's, she's been recommended to me several times from dog friends when I was going through the process of diagnosis, you could possibly contact the lab and have them talk with your vet? The test from MSU is a bit expensive at $110 each run, but the nice thing if it is hypothyroidism is that the treatment is very cheap. I order his soloxine through Dr. Foster and Smith for only $.12/pill (he gets two a day). So, other than the yearly recheck to make sure everything is good, it's a pretty cheap disorder. Diabetes on the other hand can get expensive. I know a few friends with diabetic dogs, they spend a lot on insulin unfortunately. Well, whatever the issue I hope it works itself out soon.